Building boom is moving forward in L.A…. Despite the glut of office space…

While city planners were wringing their hands and fretting that recession-bruised developers were going to leave Los Angeles with a permanently stumpy Downtown, plans were being drawn up for four new towers in the Historic Core and North South Park. Those join 21 other projects across town that will add–or are already adding–buildings of 20 stories or more to the city skyline. For your heightened pleasure, here’s a map showing all 25, from the 70-story Wilshire Grand Downtown to a clutch of Century City towers and two proposed hotels inSanta Monica. We’re not giving the Curbed guarantee that these will all get built, but even the ones that were seemingly scuttled by the recession are now showing some new signs of life.

The 70-story Wilshire Grand will be the tallest building west of the MIssissippi when it opens in March 2017. It’s due to bring 900 hotel rooms plus office space, restaurant, retail, and a “sky lobby” to Downtown LA.

Initial plans for these towers required demolition of the midcentury Century Plaza Hotel, but earlier this year a new plan was agreed for two residential towers designed by Pei Cobb Freed. The project will add a retail and restaurant plaza, renovate the hotel, and create more than two acres of public open space. The hotel will end up with 394 rooms and suites and 63 “luxury” condos.

This huge development across the street from Staples Center was approved back in 2007 and has gone nowhere. The LA Times reported it was up for sale in June and could add as many as 1,500 residential units and 700 hotel rooms plus retail, parking and tons o’ signage to the LA Live area.

A late edition to the list, the 40-story mostly residential Stationers Building was announced just last week. It’s a very new and as-yet-unentitled project courtesy of Joseph Hellen, who owns the Spring Arcarde Building next door, a couple theaters on Broadway, and a bunch of Downtown residential buildings.

According to Building Los Angeles, work began this summer on 1000 Santa Monica Boulevard, which will add 283 “glass residences” and “luxury leasing” to Century city. Originally planned as a 45-story “green blade” by Jean Nouvel, this version is from Handel Architects.

Proposed in 2006 and approved in 2009, this 39 story residential tower had a slow start but initial work is underway. Demolition of the Welton Becket-designed office building it’s replacing is expected in early 2014

This enormous Hollywood development with its Capitol Records-surrounding towers was on the glide path to constructiontown as it racked up approvals from the city. Now its being sued by two groups, and fears its right on top of an earthquake fault are requiring more testing.

City Market is an enormous 10-acre project in the Fashion District and announced in January 2013. Plans are vague but indicate that they’re planning for buildings to range in height from three to 38 stories.

This project has been floating around in various incarnations for decades. In fact, a 1980s iteration by Michael Graves made it into the Never Built Los Angeles exhibit. More recent plans have been more mid-rise than high-rise, and the site is likely selling or has recently sold to a Shanghai-based real estate company.

Vancouver-based Onni group picked up this project in 2011, and broke ground in January 2013. The 32-story mixed-user will have groundfloor retail and 283 residential units when it opens, which it’s scheduled to do in 2015.

The Vermont in Koreatown topped off in June and is due to open in mid 2014. When it does, it will bring 464 residential units, retail including a supermarket, and a bunch of parking to a lot across the street from a Red and Purple Line station.

This two-tower project planned for the parking lot behind the Hollywood Palladium is still in its infancy. But assuming it makes it through the approvals process unscathed, it will bring two 28-story towers with either 598 or 730 residential units, depending on whether they add a hotel.

The project formerly known as iHope when CIM was developing it finally got underway when Wood Partners bought the project. It’ll have 22 stories, 290 one- and two-bedroom apartments with “floor-to-ceiling glass,” balconies, and “high-end interior finishes,” along with an elevated pool deck with “oversized pool” when it opens in (last we heard) 2014.

The Ocean Avenue Project is a condo/hotel/museum condo wrapped in a Frank Gehry-designed package. Announced earlier this year, it’s making its way through the approvals process–the design review board likes it but the height runs afoul of SaMo’s proposed new height limits.

Work has just begun on Columbia Square, a rare Hollywood project that seems to have earned a modicum of goodwill (or at least not hate) from the neighbors. It’ll feature a 22-story residential tower with 200 apartments, 33,000 square feet of retail, three renovated historic structures, two new office buildings, and four and a half levels of underground parking (more than the city requires).

It was a long road for the On Top of Old Spaghetti Factory project, but construction is well underway at last. The mixed user developed by CIM will have 301 residential units plus 40,000 square feet of retail and office space in its 22 stories when it opens. Which it’s due to do next year.

Santa Monicans are currently at war over the proposed redevelopment of the Fairmont Miramar Hotel, which would replace 11 and 12-story buildings with six and 21-story ones. It’s still just in the planning stages.

Another of Barry Shy’s projects in development, this one will top out at 20 stories along Olympic and add 250 residential units to the burgeoning North South Park neighborhood. It’s likely to be permitted (if things go according to plan) in 2014.

Oh look, another member of the Marriott family coming to LA Live. This one was announced in March 2013 with few details: 450 rooms in “more than 20 stories.” Last we heard it was due to break ground in early 2014 and open in 2016.